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14 Nov 2009 10:09

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World: Hack sabbath: Orthodox Jews not happy with Intel right now

Ultra-Orthodox Jews in Jerusalem are unhappy that the plant stays open on the day of Sabbath. Intel doesn’t appear to be a very Jewish company. source
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25 Jul 2009 21:56

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Music: Saturday Mixtape: Rising indie stars and old indie pros

  • 1. It’s good to hear when a band you kinda like starts getting attention. Shoegaze + NES band The Depreciation Guild is kinda like that – after a killer free album in 2007, “In Her Gentle Jaws,” one of the members made a name for himself with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, and the rest is history. “Dream About Me” is a solid starting points.
    2. Much like The Flaming Lips or The Apples in Stereo, Wheat is a band that works best in full technicolor. The longstanding band’s just-out “White Ink, Black Ink,” especially “Changes Is,” shows that they haven’t lost their spark with time.
    3. Wye Oak’s first album was awesome because it didn’t try to fit into trends. It was just solid. The just-out second album tries a little too hard, but “I Want for Nothing” proves that that isn’t always a bad thing.
    4. This band changes its name more often than any band should – Memory Tapes? Weird Tapes? They’ve been called both, along with Memory Cassette – but either way, “Asleep At a Party,” a fractured, time-worn tune, lives up to both the song’s – and the band’s – name.
    5. Slow-buiding has always been the best way to describe indie icons Low, and “Sunflower” is one of those songs that nails their appeal. A high point for a lengthy career. source
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13 Jun 2009 17:50

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Music: Our Saturday mixtape: From Kraftwerk to projectors that are dirty

  • 1. It’s weird how much influence Kraftwerk wields, and how few people talk about it. They literally wrote the template for electronic music but don’t get constant adoration. “Pocket Calculator” is early synthpop perfected.

    2. Chiptune music is clearly influenced by Kraftwerk, and 8 Bit Weapon, led by Seth Sternberger and represented here by “Bit ‘n’ Run,” is a strong example of the form.

    3. Wow, “Bitte Orca” by the Dirty Projectors sure lived up to the hype, didn’t it? And they did it while making it look easy. “Useful Chamber” is – in our opinion – the album’s high point. It’s like Of Montreal’s “Skeletal Lamping” with asides that actually make sense.

    4. We’re convinced that whereever Gang Gang Dance’s “House Jam” is playing, there’s a massive party going on. And of course, someone forgot to invite us.

    5. There’s a lot of versions of Os Mutantes’ “Baby” floating around, but this one, with its garagey edges, is our favorite. Rita Lee’s 1971 acoustic version is also worth your time. source

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11 Apr 2009 09:19

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Music: ShortFormBlog’s Saturday mixtape: Five songs we recommend

  • one The L.A. band noise-rock HEALTH has managed to slowly expand its experimental roots into something palatable, as on stellar new single “Die Slow.”
  • two Jay Reatard stinks live – he doesn’t really have stage presence – but he has solid individual songs, such as “See Saw” from last year’s “Matador Singles ’08.”
  • three We really dig the noisy lo-fi electronica of Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, especially when he covers Bruce Springsteen’s “Streets of Philadelphia.”
  • four Rough-’round-the-edges Psych-folkie Rodriguez, a Detroit native, became big without knowing it in South Africa thanks to “Sugar Man” and his 1970 album “Cold Fact.”
  • five We’re big Dan Deacon fans here, and “Bromst” has yet to go off our musical radar. With songs like “Padding Ghost,” with its euphoric melodies, why would it?
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